Sunday, October 20

Dramatic Increase in Israeli Settlement Construction

Sunday, October 20, 2013
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Peace Now compiled disturbing evidence. More on it below. It calls itself “the leading voice of Israeli public pressure for peace.”

It wants Israel’s occupation ended. It has over 10,000 global members.

Settlement Watch is one of its important initiatives. It reports on ongoing construction. Doing so undermines peace. It prevents peaceful conflict resolution.

It denies Palestinian self-determination. It hardens ruthless occupation. Maintaining it violates international law.

Fourth Geneva’s Article 49 states:

“Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory to the territory of the Occupying Power or to that of any other country, occupied or not, are prohibited, regardless of their motive.”

Displacing Palestinians, destroying their homes, other property and personal possessions, stealing their land, as well as letting settlers occupy it directly contravenes Article 49′s mandate.

Peace Now compiles its information from published government, civilian organization and media reports, on the ground observations, aerial photography, and satellite images.

Since 1967, Israel established 124 West Bank settlements, 100 outposts, and 12 neighborhoods.

Settler enclaves were built in East Jerusalem areas. They include the Old City’s Muslim Quarter, Silwan, Sheikh Jarrach, Mount of Olives, Ras al-Amud, Abu Dis, and Jabal al-Mukabber.

In 2005, 16 Gaza settlements were dismantled as part of Israel’s disengagement plan. Residents were shifted to other settlement locations.

Occupied Palestine reflects militarized colonization and discriminatory apartheid. It’s worse than what South Africa experienced. Separate and unequal is policy.

Civil law governs settlers. Military orders deprive Palestinians of all fundamental rights. They have no control over their daily lives. Their land is systematically stolen.

They’re denied free expression and movement. Their homes are bulldozed and destroyed. They’re uprooted and displaced.

They’re forbidden from returning to land once theirs. They’re denied redress. West Bank reconfiguration plans intend to isolate them in ghettoized bantustans. Sovereign viability is impossible.

Two states once were possible. No longer. Israel controls over half the West Bank. It has much of East Jerusalem. More is added daily. When completed, Israel’s Annexation Wall will control over 10% of Palestine.

One state comprised of Israel and Occupied Palestine alone works now. Nothing else is viable.

Over 60% of January through June construction starts violated Geneva Initiative terms.

Dozens of government-declared illegal outpost units were completed. Around 180 schools, synagogues, public and other buildings were started. So were 74 industrial and agricultural facilities.

“At least 86% of the construction (1,469 units) was carried out without tenders, in settlements were (they’re) not required before construction.”

“This means that the ‘tender moratorium’ declared by the government until the prisoners release on July 2013 was not a general construction freeze, but only of a small part of the construction in the settlements.”

Two July tenders (plus East Jerusalem ones) were for settlements east of the Geneva Initiative line.

They’re in Efrat and Ariel. They’re settlements where compromise is hardest to reach.

Peace Now said 44% of construction starts were east of the Annexation Wall’s planned route. About 32% were build on its west side.

Israel talks peace, instigates conflict, steals all Palestinian land it wishes, claims a divine right to do so, blames victims for its transgressions, and remains unaccountable.

Might over right persists. So does claiming Jewish exceptionalism, supremacy and specialness.

Palestinians are isolated on their own. Governments able to help do nothing. Media scoundrels suppress longstanding injustice.

Israel takes full advantage. Palestinian liberation remains a distant dream. Maybe in the fullness of time, they hope. They’re on their own to achieve it.